Carbon footprint is an estimate of the greenhouse emissions and climate change impact of activity – for example producing one kilogram of aquaculture feed. Typically, a carbon footprint is calculated by estimating not just the CO2 emissions that the activity in question causes, but also factors in emissions of other greenhouse gases (such as methane and nitrous oxide) and in some cases other types of climate impacts as well, for example the effect of deforestation. For simplicity, all these impacts are added together and expressed as a single number in terms of carbon dioxide equivalent (CO2eq): the amount of CO2 that would create the same amount of warming.

The true carbon footprint of one kilogram of feed includes not only the direct GHG emissions resulting from the manufacturing process and the transportation of the feed to the farm. It also includes a whole host of indirect GHG emissions, such as those caused by growing the crops used in the feed, processing of feed ingredients, mining activities, production of vitamins, transport of the raw materials and so on. These are just a few of the processes involved. Transport of feed ingredients from the market to Norway is for instance less than 4% of the feed carbon footprint at the point where it is delivered to the fish farmer.

We use the PEFCR standard

The European Union's Product Environmental Footprint Category Rules (PEFCR) requires carbon footprint to be reported with the economic allocation method including land use change (LUC). So that is our primary calculation method. We also use market-based calculation for electricity as Norwegian authorities demands from Norwegian power suppliers. 

Click here to go back to the main page for emissions based on PEFCR, including LUC and with market-based calculation for electricity. 

Forest, Land and Agriculture (FLAG)
The forest, land and agriculture sector is one of the most affected by the impacts of climate change. But it is also a significant source of emissions. It represents nearly a quarter of global greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions - the largest emitting sector after energy.

To combat this issue, in September 2022 the Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi) launched the world’s first standard method for businesses in land-intensive sectors such as food, agriculture and forestry, to set science-based targets that include land-related emissions and removals - the Forest, Land and Agriculture (FLAG) Science Based Target Setting Guidance. Version 1.1 of the SBTi FLAG Guidance was published in December 2023 and is used for our calculations.

Skretting rely heavily on forests, land and agriculture (FLAG) for the production of the raw materials we use, so we are required to calculate our FLAG-related GHG emissions and set targets to reduce these emissions. FLAG target will be set soon, but we have already started to calculate and report our FLAG GHG emissions according to the “GHG Protocol Land Sector and Removals Guidance” (July 2024). 

Explanation of Carbon footprint (CO2eq) calculations (method)

Calculations are done based on calculation principles outlined in PEFCR feed for food producing animals (2018), aligned with ISO 14040/44:2006 plus the GHG Protocol Land Sector and the draft Removals Guidance (September 2022).

• Preferred database: GFLI; other quality-assured and accepted LCA databases were used if no ingredient specific dataset is available in GFLI
• FLAG: We use the Agri-Footprint FLAG database to define FLAG emissions for all LCA datasets we source from Agri-Footprint, and extrapolation of AFP FLAG database to GFLI database. the main source of secondary carbon footprint data for raw materials. FLAG assumptions for other LCA databases (agribalyse, ecoinvent), which mainly cover microingredients, are: agricultural product = 100% FLAG, non-agricultural product = 100% non-FLAG.
• Coverage: full bill of ingredients included, i.e. also trace elements and vitamins, in alignment with PEFCR feed standard
• Rework ingredients were assigned with average carbon footprint values of formulations across those latest formulations excl. rework
• Where no countries of origins are available, the global average dataset is selected; if no global average dataset is available the European average is taken, if this is also not available, a country-specific dataset is selected
• Inbound logistics for feed ingredients were calculated with estimated transport distances and intra-continentaland intercontinental global default data for international transport as given by the PEFCR Guide.

New method to calculate GHG emissions for Norwegian produced electricity increased the footprint from our own manufacturing process
In 2020 Norwegian authorities demanded that Norwegian power suppliers moved from location based to a market-based CO₂eq calculation with background in EU's Renewable Energy Directive. This is in compliance with the science-based target initiative (SBTI) which Skretting has committed to through our mother company Nutreco. For our standard calculations we use the market-based calculation for electricity for every year. The Norwegian Water Resources and Energy Directorate (NVE), no longer reports emission factors for location-based, so we will stop the alternative reporting for location-based calculations from the 2023 report and forward.

Carbon footprint of Skretting Norway's fish feed calculated with the PEFCR standard: Economic allocation, LUC included and market-based calculations for electricity

Carbon footprint (CO₂eq) per kg feed economic allocated with LUC, market-based (PEFCR standard)

	2024	2023	2022	2021	2020
Scope 1 (manufacturing process. direct GHG)	0.02	0.02	0.02	0.02	0.02
Scope 2 (manufacturing process. indirect GHG)*	0.00	0.06	0.04	0.04	0.04
Scope 3 (value chain. indirect GHG)*	1.39	1.51	1.66	2.24	2.56
Total CO2eq per 1 kg feed GHG footprint at factory gate	1.41	1.59	1.72	2.30	2.62

* A market-based calculation for electricity is used for every year. From 2024 we started to purchase certificate of origin for all the electricity we use, that is why our scope 2 is zero for 2024. Scope 3 for the period 2020-2023 has been recalculated compared to numbers reported in previous footprint and impact reports due to the introduction of new primary data received in 2024 for guar meal and salmon oil.

Carbon footprint (CO₂eq) absolute tonne emissions, economic allocated with LUC, market-based (PEFCR standard)

	2024	2023	2022	2021	2020
Scope 1 (manufacturing process. direct GHG)	10,663	10,850	13,082	13,211	14,203
Scope 2 (manufacturing process. indirect GHG)*	0	37,602	23,636	23,960	24,098
Scope 3 (value chain. indirect GHG)*	882,315	914,301	980,193	1,317,355	1,532,119
Total absolute tonne CO2eq GHG footprint at factory gate	892,979	962,753	1,016,911	1,354,526	1,570,420

* A market-based calculation for electricity is used for every year. From 2024 we started to purchase certificate of origin for all the electricity we use, that is why our scope 2 is zero for 2024. The increase in scope 2 from 2022 to 2023 and the decrease in scope 1, is because one of our boilers at the plant in Averøy was transformed from natural gas to electricity mid 2023. Since we use market-based calculation for scope 2 and not location-based, electricity in Norway has a larger emission factor than natural gas. So our absolute emissions actually increased when we went from fossil natural gas to electricity. Scope 3 for the period 2020-2023 has been recalculated compared to numbers reported in previous footprint and impact reports due to the introduction of new primary data received in 2024 for guar meal and salmon oil.

FLAG Breakdown of scope 3 (CO₂eq) per kg feed economic allocated with LUC, market-based (PEFCR standard, SBTi FLAG guidance ver 1.1 dec 2023)

	2024	2023	2022	2021	2020
[Non-FLAG] Climate change fossil†	0.85	-	-	-	-
[FLAG] Climate change LUC††	0.11	-	-	-	-
[FLAG] Climate change land management CO2†††	0.07	-	-	-	-
[FLAG] Climate change land management non-CO2†††	0.24	-	-	-	-
[FLAG] Carbon removals and storage	NA	-	-	-	-
[Pre-FLAG reporting] Climate change	-	1.10	1.24	1.38	1.53
[Pre-FLAG reporting] Climate change LUC	-	0.31	0.35	0.77	0.93
Inbound logistics	0.11	0.10	0.07	0.09	0.10
Climate change (kg CO2 eq) (Scope 3)	1.39	1.51	1.66	2.24	2.56

† Excluding LUC, peat oxidation and land management emissions
†† Including peat oxidation
††† Non-LUC land-related emissions

Breakdown of Scope 3 (CO₂eq) absolute tonne emissions, economic allocated with LUC, market-based 

(PEFCR standard)

	2024	2023	2022	2021	2020
Raw materials [Non-FLAG] Climate change fossil†	537,517	-	-	-	-
Raw materials [FLAG] Climate change LUC††	69,561	-	-	-	-
Raw materials [FLAG] Climate change land management CO2†††	44,266	-	-	-	-
Raw materials [FLAG] Climate change land management non-CO2†††	151,770	-	-	-	-
Raw materials [Pre-FLAG reporting] Climate change		663,547	781,697	864,338	934,082
Raw materials [Pre-FLAG reporting] Climate change LUC	-	184,289	152,813	399,830	537,950
Total raw materials absolute tonne CO2eq	803,114	847,836	934,510	1,264,168	1,472,032
Inbound logistics	72,496	60,054	41,142	52,919	59,839
Packaging	6,134	5,945	4,147	-	-
Air travel employees	446	330	228	84	91
Fossil car travel employees	82	106	154	177	157
Electric car travel employees**	43	30	12	8	0
Total Scope 3 absolute tonne CO2eq GHG footprint at factory gate	882,315	914,301	980,193	1,317,355	1,532,119
Outbound logistics	23,651	23,901	23,706	22,160	22,883
Total Scope 3 absolute tonne CO2eq including outbound logistics***	905,966	938,203	1,030,131	1,391,696	1,565,645

† Excluding LUC, peat oxidation and land management emissions
†† Including peat oxidation
††† Non-LUC land-related emissions

* A market-based calculation for electricity is used for every year
** Including fuel. vehicle production. maintenance and road emissions for fossil and electric cars with market-based calculations for electricity
*** Outbond logistics only covers delivery by boat

Data without land use change (LUC)

Below are Skretting Norway's GHG emissions without land use change.

Economic allocation, without LUC and market-based calculations for electricity

Carbon footprint (CO₂eq) per kg feed economic allocated without LUC, market-based

	2024	2023	2022	2021	2020
Scope 1 (manufacturing process. direct GHG)	0.02	0.02	0.02	0.02	0.02
Scope 2 (manufacturing process. indirect GHG)*	0.00	0.06	0.04	0.04	0.04
Scope 3 (value chain. indirect GHG)*	1.28	1.20	1.40	1.56	1.66
Total feed— GHG footprint at factory gate	1.30	1.29	1.46	1.62	1.72

Carbon footprint (CO₂eq) absolute tonne emissions, economic allocated without LUC, market-based

	2024	2023	2022	2021	2020
Scope 1 (manufacturing process. direct GHG)	10,663	10,850	13,082	13,211	14,203
Scope 2 (manufacturing process. indirect GHG)*	0	37,602	23,636	23,960	24,098
Scope 3 (value chain. indirect GHG)*	812,754	730,012	802,640	916,508	965,969
Total absolute — GHG footprint at factory gate	823,418	778,464	839,359	953,679	1,004,270

* A market-based calculation for electricity is used for every year. From 2024 we started to purchase certificate of origin for all the electricity we use, that is why our scope 2 is zero for 2024. The increase in scope 2 from 2022 to 2023 and the decrease in scope 1, is because one of our boilers at the plant in Averøy was transformed from natural gas to electricity mid 2023. Since we use market-based calculation for scope 2 and not location-based, electricity in Norway has a larger emission factor than natural gas. So our absolute emissions actually increased when we went from fossil natural gas to electricity. Scope 3 for the period 2020-2023 has been recalculated compared to numbers reported in previous footprint and impact reports due to the introduction of new primary data received in 2024 for guar meal and salmon oil.

Breakdown of Scope 3 (CO₂eq) absolute tonne emissions, economic allocated without LUC, market-based

	2024	2023	2022	2021	2020
Raw materials	733,553	663,547	781,697	864,338	934,082
Inbound logistics	72,496	60,054	41,142	52,919	59,839
Packaging	6,134	5,945	4,147	-	-
Air travel employees	446	330	228	84	91
Fossil car travel employees	82	106	154	177	157
Electric car travel employees***	43	30	12	8	0
Total Scope 3 — GHG footprint at factory gate	812,754	730,012	827,380	917,526	994,169
Outbound logistics*****	23,651	23,901	23,706	22,160	22,883
Total Scope 3 — GHG footprint including outbound logistics	836,405	753,914	851,086	939,686	1,017,052

† Including fuel. vehicle production. maintenance and road emissions for fossil and electric cars with market-based calculations for electricity
†† Outbond logistics only covers delivery by boat

Disclaimer
The provided carbon footprint data are based on internal calculations following the core guiding principles of the standard PEFCR Feed for Food Producing Animals (2018), but are not based on fully compliant PEFCR studies. Although Skretting has taken care to ensure that the information contained herein is as accurate as possible and up to date, Skretting does not warrant the accuracy, reliability or completeness of the information. The values have not been externally verified. The information provided is for informational purposes only and is intended for internal business use only. The reader is solely responsible for any interpretation or use of the material contained herein. The footprint data are subject to change (e.g. due to ongoing database development or better supply chain information). Furthermore, cradle-to-gate footprint values are not allowed to be used for comparison or comparative assertions among each other or with other feed footprint data in accordance with international LCA standards. Animal feed is an intermediate product in the food production chain and the footprint attached to it only reflects part of the life cycle. Without considering feed performance/ functionality and downstream impacts, comparison is neither allowed nor meaningful.